A 29-year-old man who killed a trans woman in Prince George’s County in 2021 has been given a prison sentence of 48 years.
Taya Ashton was fatally shot by DeAllen Price on July 17, 2021, in her Suitland, Maryland, home, according to prosecutors.
Price, of Capitol Heights, entered a guilty plea in October to second-degree murder and the use of firearms in the commission of an act of violence. Ashton, 20, was referred to as “a daughter and a beloved friend to many” by Prince George’s County State Attorney Aisha Braveboy.
“Taya’s passing was a true tragedy for both her family and our community. When Braveboy announced the sentence against Price on Wednesday, she said, “Her death represents so much more in terms of our community’s compassion for people who want to express themselves and live their lives on their own terms.” Anyone who makes the decision to do so should be respected and aware that their lives are just as important as anyone else’s.
Dozens assemble to mourn the passing of a Black trans woman. “Please save us.”
Community leaders and activists highlighted the importance of preventing violence against transgender individuals and holding offenders accountable in a digital media conference on Wednesday.
At least 32 trans and gender nonconforming individuals were fatally shot or killed by other violent means in 2023, according to the Human Rights Campaign. 50 percent of those victims were Black transgender people, and 84 percent were people of color.
According to The Washington Post, an intimate partner killed almost half of transgender women between 2015 and 2020.
While murder “touches the entire community,” according to Renee Lau, a member from Baltimore Safe Haven—a volunteer wellness center that serves Black transgender women and members of the LGBTQ community—it disproportionately affects trans people.
Living in Baton Rouge as a Black trans person
Due to the fact that we are such a small community, Lau said, “the murder rate, the death rate, and the fatalities due to overdoses in our community reach higher numbers.”
The LGBTQ community is “often forgotten,” according to Krystal Oriadha (D-District 7), the first openly LGBTQ member elected to the Prince George’s County Council, with many crimes against them going unreported.
Her work in June resulted in the first-ever raising of the Pride flag at the Wayne K. Curry Administration Building in Prince George’s County.
When everyone agrees that we won’t let this stand, Oriadha said, “There’s something we can do, and we’ll see change.”
Two trans people were fatally shot in Prince George’s County in 2019, highlighting the dearth of LGBTQ resources in comparison to nearby areas like D.C. In the same year, Braveboy, Oriadha, attorneys, and other members of the community formed an LGBTQIA task force.
According to Braveboy, the task force is made up of state’s attorneys’ office ambassadors who work with the community to connect with LGBTQ members to find cases and people in need of assistance. Her office also collaborates with the LGBTQ outreach group for the state police department.
In order to find gaps in resources like housing and employment, Oriadha claimed she pushed policy for an LGBTQ task force for nonprofits and county agencies.
Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), the county’s first government liaison to the LGBTQ community, was hired last year, according to an announcement from Prince George’s County Executive.
Price is represented by the public defender’s office, according to online court documents. Wednesday’s request for comment was not immediately answered by a spokesperson for the Maryland Office of the Public Defender.
Price and his defense attorney suggested at sentencing that his murder was impulsive, which Waldrup claimed she did not find credible, according to Sherrie Waldrup, the county assistant state’s attorney for Prince George.
Many members of Ashton’s family were present at the online news conference but chose not to speak. Two years ago, Ashton was remembered by her family and friends at her candlelight vigil in Prince George’s, which highlighted her desire to open a clothing store.
